Falling Through The Stars
by emerald.nocturn
Summary: Follow along with the (mis)adventures of Nox as he joins Shepard and her suicide squad on their assault against the Collectors. Lots of snark and sarcasm with minor departure from canon. A Mass Effect SI idea I couldn't get out of my head. Rated M for situations and language. Paragon Ruthless Survivor femShep.
1. Chapter 1: Of Scares and Scars

**Disclaimer: I do not own Mass Effect, only Nox and any other OC**

**Hi, Everyone! Welcome to my first attempt at a Fan Story. Reviews are appreciated, even flames. Though be warned, all flames will be read, likely laughed at, and most probably discarded.**

* * *

In hindsight, it probably wasn't a good idea to yell out someone's name unexpectedly while said person had just finished waking up to blaring alarms and fire in the windows. Such people tend to react a little more on instinct than rational thought.

Thankfully, my skull was thick enough to not shatter upon impact with the wall as my arm was wrenched painfully up my back. As my hearing stopped ringing, I was able to make out Miranda's voice over the station's intercom. Her voice was as annoyingly calm as ever.

"Your armor and a pistol is in a cabinet over in the corner, Shepard. You need to suit up and get out of there, I'll meet you in the hanger. Nox there can guide you...if you don't kill him."

"Your concern is duly noted, Miranda." I grunted against the steel, earning a light scoff from behind me. The pressure released from my arm and I straightened up, waiting for a few moments so Shepard could step back before I slowly turned around with my hands up to show I wasn't a threat, at least not right then.

To my surprise, the woman in front of me looked almost sheepish with one of her hands scratching the back of her neck. Definitely NOT what I was expecting of the famous Shepard. I would have chuckled if I didn't think it would end up with my face against another of the many hard surfaces of the room.

"Sorry 'bout that...old habits die hard." Shepard had a small apologetic grin as she looked down at me. Our heights were actually the same, but I had a tendency to slouch a little. I just gave her a deadpan stare at her words, trying hard not to laugh at the irony of her words.

"So I see."

"Shepard, you need to get moving!" Miranda's voice urged over the intercom.

"Yes, mother dearest." I quipped, an instant before the comm clicked off, earning another scoff and this time an eye-roll from the Spectre. I gestured to locker. "She's right though, all hell's breaking loose in this place for some reason. We need to get you out of here."

She glanced between me and the locker a few times before finally moving over and buckling on the armor. I noticed a small look of annoyance and confusion when she picked up the pistol and chuckled, getting a glare as her head whipped back towards where I still stood.

"Don't worry. You'll find a better weapon soon, I'm sure. Even I know that pistol's shit." That got me a raised eyebrow which I shrugged off. "I can't say anything more for now, we've wasted enough time." I said, heading off any questions. I keyed open the door and walked out into the hallway, followed quickly by Shepard who nodded silently.

In the distance we could hear screams and gunfire, though our route kept us away from any of it. Unfortunately, luck wasn't on our side as we walked into a seemingly empty room. The sound of mech activation was the only warning I got before one of its rounds slammed into my shoulder, spinning me slightly. There was an initial flash of pain as I dove into cover behind a table, my blood spattering on the flooring while Shepard unloaded into the mech. It went down with a whine of metal as Shepard crouched next to me, the sound of more mechs coming to life in the next room making her growl in annoyance.

It was with a numb curiosity that I looked at the wound, despite the bark of her pistol next to my head. There was a small hole in the skin, showing to the bone, but that was it. There was no shrapnel like I had expected; hell, the bone didn't even look broken. I was brought back to reality when a hand entered my field of vision, smearing medi-gel on the wound, making me wince. Apparently, Shepard had finished with the mechs while I had been spaced out. I inwardly groaned. Not the best first impression on her so far, I thought.

"You alright, kid?" She had a look of concern, which I thought a little odd. Why would she be concerned for me?

"Yeah, just a flesh wound." I heard myself say, getting a small smile at that. With her help, I stood up again, rolling my shoulders before wincing at the stupid idea that it was. Well, at least I still had decent motion with it. "C'mon, it's not that far now…"

We continued through the rooms, with me tossing a few thermal clips to Shepard as we went. Pretty soon we heard gunfire up ahead and Shepard rushed ahead of me to see what was going on. By the time I caught up, Shepard and a man I recognized as Jacob Taylor were talking. Jacob had pulled out his omni-tool and was talking with someone over the radio.

"We're on our way." Taylor said into the comm, before catching sight of me and nodding in greeting. "Nox, we're heading to D-block to pick up Wilson, stay behind us."

I nodded, seeing as I was the only non-combatant. I liked Taylor, he was a good man, if a little set in his ways. He and Shepard took point, moving ahead of me by about 10 meters, giving a good buffer between me and the fighting. But when we got to where Wilson said he'd be, there was just an empty room with a couple destroyed mechs and a blood trail. He had apparently given up on waiting for us and went ahead. We caught up just in time to see the door to the hanger open, revealing Miranda.

"M-Miranda! D-Damn it, the mechs were supposed to-"

"Kill me?" She finished for him as he slumped to the ground, a hole in his head. Shepard's weapon instantly came up while Taylor yelled at Miranda. I paid them no mind as I walked past Wilson's dead body and Miranda towards the shuttle. I had just gotten the engines on when they piled in, Shepard looking somewhat pissed.

Miranda stepped up beside me and punched in a few commands to program the auto-pilot before stepping back into the main area and sealing the door behind her. It didn't seem she wanted me to be able to listen in. That was fine by me, I wasn't in any condition to do so anyway. After being shot, and watching her execute someone right in front of me, I was in a state of shock most of the ride. When we landed, Miranda and Taylor led Shepard out of the shuttle with me bringing up the rear.

While Shepard went to talk with The Illusive Man, I was left to my own devices for the most part. A small medical detachment came and went to check up on the Taylor, Miranda, and I. I was given another dose of Medi-gel on my shoulder as a precaution after they cleaned it up, and left me a clean shirt and pants to change into. I nodded my thanks and stripped down to my skivvies, modesty having been thrown out the window during my time at the last station. I had already pulled on my pants and was picking up my shirt when I froze at the feeling of a hand on my back.

"What...on Earth…?"

The surprise in Shepard's voice was almost tangible. I mentally cursed at not having heard her come up behind me. Her fingers touched lightly on one of the hundreds of scars across my back. I looked like I had seen thousands of fights and come out the worse in every one of them. I turned around slowly, actually standing at my full height for once as I pulled the shirt over my head, hiding the scars along chest from view as well.

"You….didn't strike me as a fighter….Nox?" She sounded confused, having seen my obvious inexperience back on the station.

"I'm not...not really." I sighed. "As sad as it sounds. This is the only scar from a fight I have." I said, pointing out the fresh pink tissue on my shoulder.

"Then where did you get all those scars?"

"Maybe later, Commander. It's not something I really talk about." I could feel Miranda's eyes searing a hole through my back as I scratched my neck, trying to tell her I couldn't talk then. Thankfully, Shepard seemed to catch on and nodded slightly.

We were interrupted by Miranda before Shepard could reply, bringing her back to the task at hand. "We should be on our way, Commander. Our window is shrinking the longer we stay here."

Shepard glanced back at me, her curiosity at an unanswered question so evident I had to bite back a laugh. I nodded towards Miranda. "Don't worry, Commander, I'll still be here when you get back." She nodded and turned to follow the two Cerberus operatives. "I'll hold you to that, kid." She called back over her shoulder.

* * *

**I know, I know. Some of the Dialogue is different. Since this is following my OC rather than Shepard things will be a bit different than in the games, though I will try to follow as much Canon as possible.**

**~Nocturn**


	2. Chapter 2: Dents to Daisies

**Hello again! Standard disclaimer applies! Enjoy!**

* * *

It was becoming rapidly clear to me that CQC was not my strong suit, this revelation was expedited by the cold floor my back was currently bouncing off of. With Shepard off with Miranda and Jacob to who knows where, I had found myself with a lot of free time. Back on the Lazarus Station*, most of my time was taken up in the lab. I had developed a cordial friendship with Taylor, as he had been the only one seemingly willing to talk to me, and I had joined him several times in the station's gym. I was in decent shape, yes….for a civilian. For a soldier….

Let's just say I think I was making a dent in the floor by now. But let's back up a little bit here...

After Shepard left, I had, with the help of this station's VI located the….well, gym, for lack of a better word. The place was like no gym I'd ever seen. It was like a playground from hell...with large, live-fire arenas and brutally trapped obstacle courses. Yeah….I felt a bit intimidated.

Luckily I had found one corner dedicated to weights, and had settled in to pass the time. I had found out early on with Taylor I had generally superior endurance than most civilians, able to nearly match the soldier in several exercises. He still won out in strength, though.

After about two hours, I was joined by one of the off duty soldiers who asked if I would mind spotting for him. I had nothing better to do, so I agreed. We ended up striking a mild conversation about fitness in general and he mentioned some of humanities old martial art practices with focused on fitness, eventually suggesting a friendly spar.

At first, I had resisted. I had no practice with fighting. I knew I would just make a fool of myself. But he had insisted, saying he could at least show me some of the basics. Reluctantly, I had agreed, and at first he went easy on me, letting me get a few hits in on his body. After a bit, I realized he was just toying with me and called him on it. I just got a smile in return.

Next thing I knew, I was staring up at the ceiling. A hand entered my vision as he reached out to help me up. Turns out, he was the station's CQC specialist, and Taylor had asked him to at least give me a few pointers on self defense. After the tenth time in two minutes I had ended up on my back, I started to pick out some of the more obvious cues and avoid them, surprising us both when I was able to seize a moment to try a jab.

Unfortunately, surprising a CQC expert has….predictable results. By now, the floor was getting quite comfortable. Scattered applause from around us brought my attention back to the real world. Apparently, we had drawn a small crowd of soldiers. I would assume for entertainment: watching a newbie get his ass handed to him. Though, judging by their faces, I guessed that I had done something unusual. My hunch was confirmed when the CQC Spec. helped me up again.

"You got sharp eyes, kid. Since I got here, no one's seen that opening so quickly." He said, gesturing to the soldiers, a few of whom nodded in agreement. "Though, you're still a crap fighter, that jab wouldn't have hurt my grandma." That drew a few chuckles from the soldiers as they drifted away, the show over for now.

"Thanks for the beat down." I remarked, rolling my shoulders. I was gonna be sore in a few hours, I was sure.

"Anytime." He laughed, and excused himself, saying he had to get back to his squad.

Bidding him farewell, I turned back to the weights, but stopped short when I spotted Shepard watching me. I hadn't known she was back. Though, I supposed I could have missed any announcement during my recent dates with the ground. She looked simultaneously angry, disturbed, and relieved. I waved and moved over.

"Commander." I greeted, giving her a casual salute. "How long have you been back?"

"Long enough to get here and see the last eight impacts. My favorite was when he tossed you for trying to kick." She smirked, obviously having found it funny.

"Yeah, yeah, laugh it up, Commander." I groused, grabbing a bottle of water from a nearby dispenser. "How did it go, did you find what you were looking for?" From the way her face dropped, I wasn't sure if she had or not.

"Yes, it's the Collectors that are attacking the colonies…It seems that Cerberus is onto something, so for now, it looks like we'll be working together." She sighed, obviously not too happy with the arrangement.

"So what's the plan? Aren't they considered almost a myth?"

"For now, that's still up in the air. Besides, I can't really do anything without a good crew, can I?"

"What about your old crew? Can't you get them?"

She shook her head sadly. "I've been dead two years, Nox….that's not something I can just brush off like nothing happened." Now she frowned as if remembering something. "And with Cerberus' reputation now….who knows if they would even join me."

"I understand." I laid a friendly hand on her shoulder. "But, who knows, you may be surprised. All you can do is ask them, if you run across them right?" She seemed to perk up a bit at that, giving me a small smile.

"I guess you'll be heading out soon?"

She looked confused. "Yeah, but they said that they were waiting on one more crew member. You'd think that they would have had everyone ready to go by now."

I chuckled, about to reply when both our omni-tools lit up with messages from Miranda, asking Shepard back to the new Normandy SR-2, and ordering me to some odd room number. A quick glance and shrug passed between us at the odd messages.

"Well, good luck, Commander. Hope that last person shows up soon for you." I said before we parted ways. She looked disappointed at the prospect of waiting around for someone. I just hoped she wouldn't hurt whoever it was too bad when they showed up.

* * *

When the door opened, I was surprised to see Taylor waiting for me in a firing range, with an assortment of armors and weapons on a table. He didn't look too happy, but still smiled when he saw me, so he wasn't mad with me at least.

"Jacob? What's going on? I thought you were going with Shepard."

"I am," he answered. "But I was told to take care of this before we shipped out." He gestured to the table. "For some reason, we were notified that you were coming with us."

He paused, letting that sink in. "So I needed to make sure you were properly equipped at the very least, even if you aren't in combat ."

"Oookaaay…." I said slowly, more than a little taken aback. "No idea what's going on, but I'll go along with it. What do I need?"

He lifted a datapad and examined it. "According to your dossier, you 'have shown remarkable learning ability with current tech' and our friend who threw you around the ring earlier said 'His perception of movement and reaction time under duress is exceptional, and has much potential to grow.'"

"Waitwaitwait! He was actually evaluating me? I thought he was doing that as a favor to you!" I interrupted, earning a laugh from Jacob.

"Yeah, I asked him to do it, but he would have done it eventually anyway. It's his job as the CQC specialist on-station. Now, 'based on these attributes, "LS 0" AKA "Nox" is projected to take well to Class spec. 'Infiltrator'."

He stepped over to the guns on the table, where a standard issue M-92 Mantis and M5 Phalanx lay resting. "These two, the Mantis sniper, and Phalanx heavy pistol are standard issue for our agents in the Infiltrator specification, Nox. We don't have time right now to proerly train you to use the Mantis, but I can give a quick brief on the Phalanx." He said as I felt the weight of the Phalanx in my hand.

"It's been...awhile...but I was trained a little in small arms fire, Jacob. It...doesn't feel too different than what I used then…" I remarked cautiously as I took aim down the range, feet squared as I pulled the trigger once and felt the Phalanx jump in my hands. There was less recoil than I expected, which was nice to find out. A few more shots and I found and flipped the safety on before turning back to Jacob who had a slightly impressed look as he looked at a overview of the target.

"Decent grouping, though they are a little spread out. But that was good. God knows how long it's been since you held a gun, yeah?" He chuckled. "Now that we know you can at least fire the gun without hurting yourself, you should grab some armor. We have a few here that you can use to start out with, but you can get some more later from stores if you want, these are all pretty much average as far as defense and shield strength."

I nodded and inspected the armors. Since it didn't seem to matter which one I chose, I decided to go with one that looked comfortable, and wouldn't look _too_ out of place if in public. Jacob looked over the armor and nodded, helping me buckle on the actual armor after I got the suit on.

"Alright, Pick up your rifle and let's get to the Normandy. I'm sure Shepard is getting antsy."

* * *

I was glad I had my helmet on when we got to the SR-2. I'm not sure I could have kept a straight face otherwise. As it was, I had a huge grin behind the faceplate, and tried not to bust out laughing at the glare Shepard sent my way.

"About damn time you showed up! What were you doing, picking daisies?" She growled out, stomping up to me.

In response, I just held out my hand, which held a few fabricated flowers I had my omni-tool create right before we stepped into the airlock tube, and a couple actually _were_ daisies. I was very glad I had prepared for this joke, the fact that she had set me up for it so perfectly was even better. Originally, my plan was just to give them to her with an excuse that I couldn't decide which one to give her.

Stupid, I know, but since this was sprung on both of us, I couldn't help but give her a little grief over it.

"It's an honor to serve with you, Commander." I said evenly, my voice filtered through the helmet's speakers, so she wouldn't realize it was me just yet. Her eye twitching was my only warning before I was sent flying backward by a biotic shockwave, my helmet flying off after I hit the ground.

"YOU THINK THIS IS FUNNY, ASSHOLE!?" Shepard screamed, wisely being avoided by Jacob as she charged over to me. The look on her face was priceless as she realized who she had just blasted thirty feet.

"Little...bit…" I groaned as Jacob told her what was going on, and why I was there. I slowly started getting up to my knees when Shepard's foot collided with my stomach, sending me skidding another five feet. Thanks to my shields, I didn't really feel the blow, but it did knock the air out of my lungs

She seemed torn between anger and incredulity, shaking her head as she walked away. "You so owe me for that stupid joke, kid…" She growled, stepping into the airlock, leaving Jacob standing over me his hand covering his eyes as he shook his head.

"That went well…" I wheezed.

* * *

***I'm calling it Lazarus Station because the project was there, if it has an actual name, please let me know.**

**Little bit longer this time, Yay! Sorry for the delay in updating!**

**Had a little trouble coming up with this chapter. This is new to me, and trying to balance school and work with writing is every bit as annoying as it seemed from reading other author's notes. Not too much going on plot-wise as far as Canon, mainly setting up Shepard and my classes. (Can anyone guess what hers is?) And some of my OC's back-story. **

**Internet cookiez and a shoutout to anyone who wants to guess or ask questions about Nox. I know there are those who can probably guess what happened from the hints, the imagination on this site is phenomenal! (I can't guarantee I will answer all questions completely, cuz spoilers!)**

**~Delecat Lectio!**  
**~~Nocturn**


	3. Chapter 3: Medical Mishaps

**Standard Disclaimer applies.**

**Allo again, everyone! Sorry for the delay in updating, I just couldn't quite nail down how I wanted this to go! That said, Enjoy!**

* * *

Alright, so….it turns out that being too much of a smart-ass was bad for your health. Who knew, right? Still...I swear she was trying not to crack up...before she cracked my ribs in two places. Yeah, let's go with that. My ribs had mended within the hour, the miracles of modern science proving itself once again, but the good Dr. Chakwas insisted I stay for a full medical checkup and rest at least the rest of the day.

Laying back on a medical bed, staring up at the lights, was mind numbingly boring. Everything screamed at me to get up and move, do _something_. But…..something kept me from just getting up and leaving. Mainly the feeling that crossing Dr. Karin Chakwas would land me in far hotter water than if I had recorded and spread videos of Shepard's personal life across the extranet.

Yeah…..not gonna chance it.

When she finally let me out of there, we had come out of the Widow Relay, and were nearing the Citadel. It seemed that in addition to recruiting one Kasumi Goto, Shepard wanted to meet with Councilor Anderson. From the information I was able to dig up from the extranet, I assumed there was a near family bond between them, and I couldn't blame her for wanting to let him know she was alive as soon as possible.

Of the four ground crew, only Shepard and I left the Normandy. She only took me because she didn't trust either of the two Cerberus agents, and Miranda had insisted someone go with her. Neither of them were happy with how things turned out, though I would bet that Shepard was the more pleased of the two.

I think it also helped that I opted to nix the Cerberus paint job on my armor. Because, seriously, given the popular opinion on them, I don't want to be broadcasting that I'm with them by having their sigil emblazoned on my chest. Flying in on the SR-2 was bad enough, openly displaying something like that could get me lynched if I wasn't careful.

* * *

As soon as we stepped out of the skycar that had brought us to Zakera Ward, where we were supposed to rendezvous with Kasumi Goto, she had told me on the ride over, our attention was drawn to the advertisement that was spazzing out next to a Keeper.

"Judging from the other column over there...I assume that's a bit out of the ordinary….?" I asked Shepard, who nodded, looking at the screen with some concern. There seemed to be some broken audio coming from it so I stepped forward to hear it better. When I caught the word "Shepard" I motioned her closer.

"_Commander Shepard. We have the finest companions waiting for you…"_

"_Perhaps something petite, smart, and Japanese would be your style?"_

"When you said the terminal would be different than the rest, I wasn't expecting an escort ad…" I said, rolling my eyes. I could have sworn I got a small wink from the screen in response, though it was gone as quick as it came.

Shepard shook her head, nudging me to the side as she stepped forward. "I'll take it from here, don't wander too far."

"Yes'm." I answered, shrugging as I walked off. I happened to catch her say "Silence is Golden" right before I was out of earshot.

Small though the area was, there was plenty to listen to. I got a small kick out of the drill sergeant berating his men about "eyeballing" the cannons on the ships. It truly was sad that even with all the technology available, people will still find ways to be stupid.

Once he was finished I looked back at Shepard, who was still talking away with the ad. I noticed that she was getting more than a couple odd looks from passersby, but none seemed concerned enough to eavesdrop.

Movement above Shepard drew my eyes to the catwalk that ran above the area. Some sort of maintenance footpath, maybe… It certainly didn't look like someplace where someone would normally be. Yet, there was a woman, her omni-tool active as she paced. One look at her hood that obscured her face and I knew it was the same one Shepard was talking to on the ad.

Before I could move close enough to alert Shepard, the woman I assumed to be Kasumi Goto called down to Shepard with a playful grin. Her grin grew as I moved into earshot.

"See you on the ship, Shepard!" Was her parting remark as she walked out of view of us.

I shook my head, chuckling a little. "Sly little thief…."

Shepard just sighed, obviously not appreciating it as much, considering she had been made to look like a fool. She took it in stride, though. "Remind me to have a word with her later…"

She turned towards the entrance of Zakera ward. "Come on, we might as well stock up on supplies while we're here."

"What kind of supplies? Wouldn't something like that normally be handled by the crew?" I asked, falling into step beside her.

"Well...I mean supplies for the ground crew, see if there are any new weapons or mods that could be useful..that kind of thing. Plus…" She had a small smile. "Since I have such a nice fish tank, I might as well find some fish to put in it."

"Hah, fair point!" I snorted, my skin crawling a bit as the sensors in the hallway scanned us both while we walked towards the other door. We both tensed up when the blue lights in the area lit up red.

The tech near the door waved us over, his face a little confused. "Sorry, it must be a bug in the sensors. They are saying you're….well… dead…"

Shepard sighed. "Well, was listed as missing in action a couple years ago."

The tech nodded. "Well, would you mind checking in with my Captain? He can reinstate you into the system. He's just past the scanners on your right."

Shepard looked a little annoyed but just thanked him as we were let through the door.

"You'll have to make him scream a little. He's not gonna tell you everything just cause you ask." We heard a man order as we stepped into the room. He was talking to a female officer that was sitting at a console to his left. He seemed a little annoyed.

"I-I know sir."

"If you don't have the stomach or you're worried about being reported, I can take care of it."

"NO sir, I can handle it!" She seemed adamant she could handle it and he let it go, turning his attention to Shepard as she stepped up to him.

"Yes? Ah, I see the problem right here, Commander Shepard. My console says you're dead."

Shepard nodded. "Your Sergeant said you could help with that."

"Yeah, with you, I just push this button right here, and you're free to go. The problem is your friend here. I'm afraid I'm gonna have to hold him here for the time being."

"What kind of problem? " She asked, confused. "Why do you need to do that?"

"The problem is, in this day and age, everyone has some kind of record or ID. Those scanners can even pick up DNA from skin flakes, so there's no doubt you're you."

His hand shifted to hover over a button as he spoke. "Your friend here has nothing. Our scanners can't match him to any record or file anywhere."

"In essence, Commander. He doesn't exist."

* * *

**Ugh, cliche cliffhanger is cliche, I know. Who knows, maybe Nox here is just a figment of everyone's imagination! **

**Yeah, not really. lol**

**I promise, things will pick up soon. One more chapter, then it's on to Omega!**

**To my Guest reviewer: You are both wrong and not wrong. That is all I can say on the matter right now.**

**Read and Review please!**

**~Nocturn**


	4. Chapter 4: Ancient History for Some

A/N IT LIVES! more on bottom :)

* * *

"What do you mean, he doesn't exist?" Shepard asked, looking between the two of us.

I answered before Bailey did, earning a surprised look from the captain. "What he means, is that there is no record of me anywhere. I'm not on any known record or database reachable by the good Captain." I said matter-of-factly, getting a nod from the captain.

What I said next got incredulous looks from pretty much everyone in earshot. "I suspect that even the Spectre databases have nothing on me." Bailey and Shepard stared at me for a few moments before Bailey shook his head. "Well, that aside, I can't let him leave this checkpoint until this gets cleared up." He looked at me apologetically. "We will have to keep him in one of our holding rooms until we do."

Shepard didn't seem too pleased at those words but I held up a hand, forestalling her as I addressed Captain Bailey.

"Unfortunately, Captain, I can't give you any information on me right now, though I will stay without a fuss." I turned to Shepard as he nodded, waving over a couple of orderlies to escort me. "I know you have questions Shepard, but I can't give you any answers until you've sorted out your own identity with the Council."

I turned to follow the orderlies, leaving a slightly dumbfounded Shepard and Bailey behind as I called over my shoulder lightly. "Besides, I could use a little while without "her" breathing down my neck." I chuckled, referring to Miranda back on the ship.

Surprisingly, the next few hours pass pretty quickly, though I get the feeling I'm being watched more than once, and not by the cameras in the room. Though each time I started to look around for the feeling, it disappeared. I'd given up trying to find it, and for the last ten minutes, I've mainly ignored the feeling as I waited patiently for Shepard to return.

I was in the middle of a holographic card came when Shepard walked through the door, locking it behind her before taking a chair opposite me, glancing down curiously at the game for a moment before her eyes flicked up to my face as I spoke before her again, not taking my eyes off the game.

"So...How'd it go?" I queried lightly, gently tapping the tabletop to move some cards, seemingly at ease.

She sighed slightly before answering. "Well enough, the Council decided to let it slide for now, even let me keep my Spectre status as we investigate this, though they "regret" they can't support us publicly." Her eyes narrowed slightly when she saw my hand hesitate briefly.

"Well, that's useful at least…" I said carefully, moving another card. To my credit, I didn't flinch when her fist slammed down on the table, though the holographic cards scattered over the table at the vibration, somewhat startling Shepard before I cut the program with a shrug, I wasn't going to win anyway.

"Who are you Nox?" She snarled. "I checked the Spectre archives, and like you said, there was nothing on you in them. Only when Anderson ran you through the Alliance databases did we get any information, and all that was was some mostly corrupted files on blood donations….that matched your genetic code" Again, her eyes did not fail to catch the small amount of tension that entered my posture, though I kept my manner as relaxed as I could.

"Was that all you found?" I asked softly, my foot twitching slightly with some nervous energy.

Her eyes never left mine as her omni-tool lit up, displaying a single date on the table between us. "This was the only one not corrupted entirely." Her gaze turned steely, demanding an answer from me.

September 9th…

2015

"Even with modern tech, people don't live for nearly two hundred years, Nox. Or should I call you T-"

"_That_ name...has no more meaning, Shepard…" I growled, cutting her off as her eyes go wide at the inadvertent confirmation. I gave a rueful smirk. "I'll be damned, even Cerberus' worms didn't pick that up, which is something to be grateful for I suppose."

At her quizzical look, I shrugged. "Simply put, Shepard, I'm a guinea pig to them, no background, and no future beyond what they want to dictate. As far as I could find out, all they know about me is that I was some cadaver kept in the basement on the off chance that reviving someone became possible. It just so happened we were in a similar state, and I was used as a tester for most of the procedures used to revive you."

Seeing her eyes widen as the new information sank in, I continued. "The less they know about me, the better, and I'd like to keep it that way. I don't trust them, just as much as you do, Shepard, perhaps even less."

I leaned forward, all pretense of relaxation gone. "I'd appreciate it if you kept this information to yourself, Shepard. In this time, I'm just a nobody, and I like it that way. Not that I was anyone important when I was alive before, but still…"

Still trying to process the information, Shepard only nodded numbly to my request, something I would learn in the coming weeks that was very irregular.

* * *

**Okay! So...yeah, I'm back! I had to take some time off to deal with some life, and got distracted from updating, but please believe I never forgot it. One problem I had was where I wanted this conversation to go, inasmuch as how much backstory I wanted to divulge as yet. I came to a somewhat happy medium for myself here, though the chapter is quite short.**

**As far as more updates go, it will likely be somewhat sporadic, but I hope not to make you all wait another quarter year or so between them!**

**Go ahead and drop a review if you wish, I will gladly take all! Comments, questions, even suggestions on what you might like to see later on (Though I won't guarantee them, I'll gladly take it into consideration!)**

**~Nocturn**


	5. Chapter 5: Drinks and Downtime

**Disclaimer: I own nothing but my own OCs.**

* * *

I rubbed the back of my neck as I stepped into the Observation Deck, not surprised to see it empty. Not many of the crew ever took the time to come here for some reason or another, despite the fully stocked bar. I moved over to the bar and slipped behind it, slowly considering the oddly shaped canisters with a small scowl. I finally had to raise my omni-tool to identify the liquids as they all looked the same.

I could have sworn I heard a small chuckle, tensing slightly before sweeping the room with a glare. When I found nothing, I turned back to the bar wall and grabbed one of the canisters and a glass. I moved back around the bar to sink into the lounge sofa facing the stars outside, resting the drink on the table after pouring a small shot of the liquid.

I sighed softly, closing my eyes for a moment as I tried to relax a little, reaching for my glass…..that wasn't there.

…

My eyes opened in confusion, seeing the glass scant millimeters from my fingers, only without the liquid. I blinked a few times, taken aback, before rubbing my eyes, thinking I was seeing things. When my vision cleared, the same amount of the drink was in the glass as I had poured.

I must have had the most dumbfounded look on my face, as I heard another small chuckle from somewhere in the room. I shook my head, getting up and carefully moving back to the bar, not letting the table out of my sight as I snatched up a second glass.

Once back to the table, I poured two drinks, one for me, and another for my mysterious companion.

I gave a small smile, before downing my drink, looking away from the other glass. "Cheers." When I looked back, the glass was empty.

My lips quirked slightly as I poured us each another glass.

"I take it you've taken a liking to this room….Miss Goto?" I asked the empty space around me, taking a guess as to who my companion was. I didn't get a response right away, making me feel like a dolt, talking to thin air. Then again, it wouldn't be the first time I'd done that, I thought with a shrug, letting my head rest back on the sofa, closing my eyes for a moment as I felt the warmth of the alcohol spread a little faster than I'd like for just one shot. I decided I should take it a little easier, it wouldn't do to get shit-faced and embarrass myself when I was just trying to relax.

A subtle sound, like the snap of a static shock above caused me to open my eyes again, to find dark eyes, glimmering with mischief, staring into mine half a foot away. She was leaning over my head from behind the sofa.

Even though I had been expecting something of the sort, her sudden appearance that close startled me enough for my heart rate to spike and my body to jump slightly. She gave me a satisfied smirk, as if pleased with herself.

I frowned back at her as she pulled away and walked back around the sofa to plop down on the other side of the table. "Miss Goto, I presume?"

She smirked, shaking her head. "Oh, no, call me Kasumi, "Miss Goto" makes me sound old." A hint of playfulness in her tone that made me relax as I chuckled.

"Fair enough, fair enough. Nice to meet you Kasumi, my name is -"

"Nox…..That's Latin, isn't it?" She interrupted, making me blink in surprise.

"Y-yeah, how did you…?"

"I heard Shepard say your name on the Citadel." She elaborated nonchalantly, in response to my half phrased question. I scoffed slightly, more than a little bewildered by her as I shook my head with a chuckle.

"Pleased to meet you then, Kasumi" I said with a rueful smile, raising my glass to her.

She smiled, raising her own, "Thanks for the drink, Nox."

I took a small swallow before I spoke again. "How are you settling in? No problems I hope?"

She answered with a shake of her head and a wink. "No problems, though people should really watch where they are walking. I can't tell you how many times they've nearly stepped on my toes."

I looked at her confused for a moment before I realised that she had been probably walking around the ship under cloak. I just shook my head in amusement.

"Perhaps they just got distracted by the Mist onboard?" I asked, getting my turn to smirk as her eyebrows disappeared into the shadows of her hood.

**+Internal scans and logs of the Normandy show no presence of the weather phenomena "Mist" since the Normandy's commission and construction, Nox. Or did you perhaps mean something else?+** EDI chimed in from the intercom.

"It's nothing EDI, just a figure of speech. Though…" I smirked, winking at Kasumi. "I could swear Joker gets a misty look in his eyes while you two fight."

**+I see. Signing you out, Nox.+** EDI said, the intercom shutting off.

"I think he just likes having someone to argue with." I confided in Kasumi.

**+I heard that, Nox!+** Joker's voice followed over the intercom as Kasumi and I suppressed a snicker.

"You know it's true!" I shot back, hearing a grumble in reply as EDI found another issue with his piloting and they left us alone to our chat as we set course for Omega.

* * *

**Bit of a lighter chapter this time, with the first meeting between Nox and Kasumi. **

**Now I know I promised to get to Omega soon, and we will be getting there next Chapter! Just one thing, which one do you want to recruit first?**

**Everyone's favorite Turian bad-boy sharpshooter, Archangel?**

**or**

**The bad-ass ex-STG who is the very model of a Scientist Salarian, Mordin Solus?**

**Leave a review of your choice or your thoughts on the chapter. The popular pick will be the focus of the next few chapters.**

**Questions, Comments, Concerns, Guesses at the plot twists?**

* * *

**~Nocturn**


End file.
